OpenJDK Community Innovators' Challenge

Sun Microsystems, Inc., is sponsoring the OpenJDK Community Innovators' Challenge, a contest with up to $175,000 in awards, intended to encourage and reward developers working together in solving key problems, initiating new innovative projects that promote new uses for the code, developing curricula and training, and porting the OpenJDK code base to new platforms.

Finalists

Final proposals were due on 2 March 2008. A panel of Judges reviewed these proposals and selected a set of seven finalists; these were announced on 17 March 2008. Here are the finalists, in the order in which their proposals were received:

The finalists have until 4 August 2008 to implement their proposals, with all work done using transparent development methods and under the auspices of the OpenJDK Community.

For the record, the Judges for the Challenge are: Alan Bateman, Alex Buckley, Danny Coward, Joe Darcy, Ray Gans, James Gosling, Onno Kluyt, Jim Melvin, Alex Potochkin, Phil Race, Mark Reinhold, and Rich Sands, all of whom are employees of Sun Microsystems, Inc.

At the conclusion of the project phase, the Judges will rank the completed projects by the degree of successful completion, the technical merit of the implementation, and the value of the completed project to the community. Prizes will be awarded to all completed projects according to a prize table, with $175,000 in cash prizes available to be awarded on or about 18 August 2008.

Resources

We are running the Challenge in the open. Work on proposals and projects will be done transparently, and all entries and projects must be contributed under the Sun Contributor Agreement. Discussion about the Challenge takes place on the challenge-discuss (at) openjdk.java.net mailing list.

Interested in learning more? Here are some additional resources for you:

• The Sun Contributor Agreement: If you've not signed this, then go check it out and follow the instructions for signing and sending back this agreement, which is required for you to participate.
• An FAQ: What would an OpenJDK initiative be without an FAQ? Here you'll find answers to the basic questions.
• The Official Rules: These spell out in detail how to enter and participate, timelines and requirements, and the operation of the Challenge.
• The mailing list: Join this list to participate — it's where all the action will take place!

We are excited about the Challenge. We're hoping it will get you excited too, and will help kickstart a new wave of innovation and ideas for the OpenJDK Community.